Commit
by Miss J Idiotic
Summary: Ino Yamanaka couldn't commit. Shikamaru Nara couldn't keep away. And for some unknown reason, she found herself falling. InoShika, One-Shot.


_Ino Yamanaka couldn't commit. Shikamaru Nara couldn't keep away. And for some unknown reason, she found herself falling._

_**Commit**_

"_Shiiiika...!" _ The squealing from outside his apartment door continued to sound and Shikamaru grunted in annoyance, pulling a pillow over his head to block out the noise. But the banging and shouting continued and Shikamaru just _couldn't _ignore it. He sighed loudly, to make sure she heard him, and pulled himself out of the warm bed covers, dragging his feet towards the door. He pulled it open and then returned to his bed, not even bothering to welcome her in. She, in turn, was furious with his attitude. She pouted, slamming the door behind her and placed her hands on her hips. "You should be up, Shikamaru," she insisted, "come _on_!"

But he ignored her and climbed back underneath the covers, settling himself comfortably before closing his dark brown eyes and trying to get some more sleep. She scowled at his closed bedroom door and decided to pursue him. She slammed open his door, eyes full of fire and rage, and then she leaped at him like a furious lioness, landing right on top of him, pinning him down. "Shikamaru!" she screamed in his ear, "get your ass out of this bed right _now_!" He rolled over, causing her to fall from the bed in a very undignified way and smirked as he peered over the edge at her. She picked herself up and her face contorted into the scariest thing he had ever seen.

She leaped at him again, arms reached out to pry the covers off the bed but with quick reflexes, he had somehow managed to stop her and grab her wrists. His eyes bore into her own blue ones. "Why can't you just let me _sleep_, Ino?" He complained. She frowned and tried to pull her arms free but his grip was like iron. She struggled, muttering curses at him and shouting. But her fighting died down. Shikamaru relaxed a bit and he loosened his grip slightly. "Now Ino, go home. Leave me in peace."

In one swift movement, she had pivoted on her elbow and had swung her leg to hit him in the head and pulled herself free from his grasp. He just sat there, very unimpressed. He scratched his bare stomach and huffed. "Fine," he murmured before falling back, his head hitting the pillow and he closed his eyes again. "_Shika..._ Just get up." He pretended not the hear her and for one final time she jumped onto his bed and tackled him, punching and lashing at him to try and get him out of bed.

Finally, Shikamaru had had enough and he grabbed her, flipping her over and moving with the flow, successfully pinning her down under him. She wriggled but he had her legs pinned and he was currently holding her arms down. She glared at him and he smirked, his dark hair falling into his eyes as he had not yet tied it back. Ino once again tried to fight against him and he said to her in a low, bored voice, "you are so troublesome." She refused to give in though, and did something completely unexpected for anyone other than Shikamaru. She brought her head up so she was just millimetres away from his and parted her lips slightly. She eyes watched his lip but he had experience this trick before. He smiled and leaned closer, their noses brushed and her eyelids closed halfway, preparing for her next move.

"That's not going to work," he whispered and her eyebrows creased. She let her head drop down. "Sometimes, Shikamaru," she said, "you are just too smart. You're no fun to toy around with." Shikamaru shook his head and released her, sliding his legs off the edge of the bed now that Ino had woken him fully. "Remind me why I'm going shopping with you, Ino?" he asked her and she beamed, personality completely changed. "Because..." she grinned at him, eyes sparkling, "I have to look _perfect_ for my date with Haru!"

"This includes me how?" he continued to quiz her, standing and wondering over to his drawers and pulling out some clothes. She, avoiding her gaze so as not to look at him in only a pair of boxers, mock-sighed. "Shikamaru, you're a guy. You'll know what a guy finds attractive." He raised an eyebrow at her and chuckled. "So I'm going shopping with you so that I can comment on which outfit make you look sexiest?" Ino winked at him and he rolled his eyes, heading for the bathroom.

He returned with water dripping down his tanned chest and a towel wrapped around his waist. Ino flushed red. "I'll wait for you in the other room," she said. He let out a single laugh before putting on his clothes and pulling his wet hair into a ponytail. When he exited his room, Ino was helping herself to the things in his fridge. She jumped when he asked her what she was doing. She turned to face him, half a bar of chocolate protruding from her mouth. "Nofin'" she said, covering her mouth with one of her French-manicure nails.

"What a drag." He said, "Going shopping with you. Pft."

Ino glared daggers at him and said, after swallowing down the chocolate, "too bad. We made a deal." Shikamaru smirked a little and raised an eyebrow at her. "You still remember your end of the deal, right?" She nodded, choosing not to continue on the subject and instead threw a couple of snack bars at him before pulling him out of the door. They headed down to the main market and Ino dragged Shikamaru into her favourite dress stores. She immediately began to search through racks of dresses and skirts and outfits, asking his opinion (which was usually a 'hmpf' or some sort of grunt) to which she would reply, "yes, you're right, the shade doesn't match my skin tone."

She found several items of clothing that she liked and made her way over to the changing rooms. Shikamaru settled himself in one of the waiting chairs and impatiently sat there until Ino pulled back the curtain and stepped out, admiring herself in the full-length mirror. Then she turned to him, blond hair cascading down her back and falling in her sparkling, azure eyes. The outfit was that of a halter-neck dress in a deep maroon colour which flared at the bottom. Shikamaru cocked his head to the side and said, without delay, "too puffy."

Trying again, she came out next in a simple dark blue top with a lacy white skirt. Ino's companion frowned and shook his head. Growling, Ino stormed back in and changed again.

"No. Too girly."

"Nope. I hate tha- in fact, what _is_ that?"

"Ergh, _pink_."

She gave up and came back out, handing all the clothing to the woman at the counter and began to look around again, doubting anything would catch her, nor Shikamaru's, attention. Then he halted and pulled on her sleeve and when she looked up at him she saw his sight was fixed on something on a mannequin on the other side of the store. She followed his eyes and found what he was looking at. And she fell in love. It was a simple little dress- her favourite shade of purple- and it went down to about mid-thigh level. It was strapless and had lace lining the rim around the bottom. A lilac ribbon circled the waist and tied into a large bow at the back.

Ino tried it on without delay.

When she pushed passed the dressing room curtain and checked herself in the mirror, she was delighted with what she saw. It was perfect. Now all she needed was _his _approval. She turned to him to find her dark eyes scanning her entire body, head to toe, as if he was having some sort of a realization. Then their eyes met and the corner of his mouth tilted upwards in the tiniest motion but Ino knew it meant he liked it. So she grinned and changed back into casual clothes before buying the dress.

**-X-**

Shikamaru remembered that day shopping with Ino while he was sat at his coffee table playing Go by himself. He remembered her stepping out of the dressing room, the lilac fabric of the dress hugging her curves as it flowed half-way down her flawless thighs. He remembered sweeping his eyes over her luxurious figure and wondering why he couldn't keep away. Ino Yamanaka had been a close family friend since they were children, and had finally befriended him once they joined the same ninja squad. And it was now of all times, thinking over the tiniest signs in his head that had been happening over the past few weeks, that he realised something.

Ino Yamanaka couldn't commit. No matter how many dates she went on, whether they be with other ninja or some good-looking store employee, it never lasted over a week. And, Shikamaru thought smugly, despite this fact, almost every man in the village was hopelessly in love with her. She was beautiful, intelligent and skilled. Of course, they didn't know her bad side, but who (apart from himself, Choji and various others) did? And it was while going through this various topic, him sitting on the sofa with his hands folded in his lap- the game of Go forgotten- that Shikamaru had an epiphany; he, too, was in love with Ino Yamanaka.

It was absurd. They'd know each other almost all their lives and now, after piecing things together for couple of weeks, Shikamaru found out he had been in love with her for several years? It was messed up. Of course, she was extravagantly beautiful and fiery, with a soft and gentle side, but she- no matter how much they had been through together- was out of his league. Sighing, Shikamaru laced his hands behind his head and leaned back against the sofa.

For some reason, Shikamaru really wasn't surprised. Maybe he had known that he was in love with her? It wasn't a mere crush or some form of weak attraction, he knew that much. He was infatuated with her all of a sudden, love-sick over the girl he couldn't have. Yet, deep inside him, he knew he didn't care. As long as he got to see her smile every single day, as long as she was happy, as long as he got to be with her on missions, as long as they were able to be friends for as long as they both should live, he was happy.

That was a very odd revelation for the man who found everything in life troublesome and not worth his effort.

**-X-**

She woke up in the morning feeling downcast and she couldn't understand why. The date with Haru had gone well; the man had taken her out to a restaurant and they had spoken about their lives and family and friends, and then he had strolled hand-in-hand with her down the road to her apartment building where she kissed him on the cheek to thank him for the wonderful night. Then she had entered the building, running up a few flights of stairs to get to her floor. She had set her eyes on Shikamaru's door as she passed it (since they were next-door neighbours thanks to her father's over-protectiveness) before coming to her own and unlocking it and readying herself for bed.

She pulled herself from bed, blond hair astray and wild, and dragged her feet across the floor before washing and dressing in some casual clothes. There hadn't been many missions lately so she didn't bother to dress in ninja attire. She also couldn't bring herself to tie up her wet hair so instead just letting it fall over her shoulders until it dried. She sat at her table eating a bowl of cereal, enjoying the taste as she peered out the large window, when Shikamaru came sauntering in, not even knocking, and seated himself opposite her.

Eyeing him suspiciously, she noted his not-quite-right expression. She finished her foot and stood to put it in the sink before seating herself again. "Shika..." she said quietly, feeling the mood slowly press on her, "what's up?" He sighed and held his head in the palm of his left hand and stared right into her ice-blue eyes. Ino remembered her sad mood that morning and her expression softened a little. "The Hokage has set me a mission in the Sound Village," he said, "and it's a dangerous one. Our squad might not come back."

Ino felt her mood drop even lower, felt the information weigh down on her. She motioned for them to move into the main room and Shikamaru seemed happy to. He sat on the sofa and kicked his feet onto her coffee table and for once she didn't scold him because she knew it wouldn't be right to. He folded his arms across his chest and stared out of her window up and the sky. "Can't you decline it?" Ino whispered, but she knew her plea was nothing useful.

"No, I'm the squad leader. This is an important mission. We're to retrieve plans from the Sound Village about a supposed attack." He leaned back and closed his eyes. "We have to go in undercover for a while to gain their trust. It could be months. And then we make our move, hope we don't get caught, bring back the goods without being killed, and report to Tsunade-sama." He turned and opened his eyes, staring deep into her own cobalt ones, and watched her for a moment. "I doubt we'll make it."

The young woman was lost in her own thoughts. Shikamaru, her dear friend Shikamaru, was going on a critical mission that posed a chance of him not coming back. She felt her eyes watering and cursed at herself for being so weak. Sure, she would miss him; and yes, she would worry for his safety every single second of the day; and of _course_, she would do _anything_ to keep him here with her but she knew she was being selfish. And then it clicked- the thoughts that just went through her mind replayed themselves and Ino couldn't believe what she had just figured out at this moment in time.

She was helplessly, unintentionally, irrationally, in love with Shikamaru Nara.

'_What a drag,' _she felt herself wanting to say and then realised that he was rubbing off on her. She peered at Shikamaru carefully and noted his far-away appearance. She stared down at the floor and the silent over the two became too uncomfortable. "I still remember my end of the deal for you to come shopping with me," Ino said, "when do you leave for the mission?"

"Tomorrow, why?"

She flashed a smile at him and stood, pulling him to his feet. "I'm going to fulfil my end of the deal. Now go tell Choji and your parents about the mission, say your farewells and everything. Come back in a couple of hours, yeah?" Shikamaru, dazzled by her suddenly high spirited mood, nodded wordlessly and went to obey Ino's command. She, on the other hand, grabbed her purse from the kitchen side, stuffed it into her bag and fled from the apartment a couple of minutes later. She headed down to the market and bought what she needed.

All the while, as she handed the clerk some coins and took the bagged items from him, she couldn't help but let her mind wandered back to Shikamaru. He hadn't seemed very happy that morning (and she could obviously see why) and Ino just wanted to see his teasing smirk one more time before he went on that mission. In fact, she _needed_ to see him smile- even if it was a simple arrogant or mocking one- like she need oxygen to breath. She relied on that one image to keep her going until he came back.

Until he came back. She refused to think _if _he would, because that meant she had accepted his death was going to happen. Which it wasn't, she insisted. He would come back to her, she knew it.

**-X-**

Shikamaru had the tiniest of smiles on his face. His mother and father had handled the news well, saying that they knew he would come back safe and sound- a hero to the Village. They had sat him down and just spent some time with him, the three of them talking and, for once, having a nice time as a family. Choji had, of course, been worried for his friend but very confident that he could do it. Then the large ninja had dragged the shadow manipulator to a bar, and bought him several pints before they headed out for a little food.

When he returned to his apartment, he had not expected to open the door and inhale the wonderful scent of food from the kitchen. He stepped inside, kicking off his shoes and wandered into the cooking area where he spotted Ino, clad in a pale apron, stirring something in a pan while simultaneously watching something that was in the microwave. "Ino?" Shikamaru questioned, cocking an eyebrow at his female friend. She beamed at him when she saw him and laughed cheerfully. "Hi, Shika. I'm almost finished making dinner."

"Uh, yeah, that's great," he said. "But what are you doing here?"

"Making dinner, _duh_."

He continued to stare at her and found his eyes scanning her from head to toe. With her blond hair falling down her back, a flowing skirt ending just above her knees and the apron tied in a bow at the back, Shikamaru could have sworn that he had just walked into a world where Ino was his wife making dinner for him after a day at work. Because Ino looked positively... Domestic. He shook the thought from his head and approached his friend. "Why?"

"It's my end of the deal, remember?"

"When I said buy me dinner, I didn't mean bring it home and cook it for me." He sighed and watched her as she turned off the oven and cooker and started to piece together the meal on two plates, and then he realised she was eating with him. Leaning up against the doorframe, he crossed his arms over his chest until she untied the apron and lead Shikamaru to the larger, dining room table that he hardly ever used. She placed the plates on opposite sides and sat down, motioning for him to do the same.

The food was, surprisingly, very good. He enjoyed it and he and Ino ate silently, just enjoying it and each other's company. When they were finished, Ino took the plates and placed them in the sink, coming back with a bottle of expensive wine and two glasses. She poured it out and Shikamaru took a sip. Ino watched him, examined him and was happy that he seemed to have enjoyed the meal. She sipped at her own beverage and leaned her head into her left palm. Her friend leaned back in his chair.

"Thank you," was the first thing he said to her and she smiled kindly at him. They stayed like that, quiet, just thinking to themselves how lucky they were to have the other. Eventually, they made it to the sofa with the wine bottle in tow and Shikamaru rested an arm around her shoulders casually. "How was your day?" Ino asked, staring off out the window while he just gazed, uninterested, at the ceiling. He looked at her and saw she had turned to make conversation with him.

"Good," he said and smiled- a genuine smile. "Spent some time with my parents, went out with Choji..." Ino nodded along and seemed pleased about it. Another silence hung over them and then Ino changed the subject. "I'm really worried about you going on this mission," she said, "but I know you can do it. I don't want you to go, and I know it's selfish of me." Shikamaru raised his eyebrows and didn't interrupt when she continued. "I know that every day you're gone, I'll miss you so much and... I know I'll be praying for you to come back..." This was when Shikamaru noticed the lone tear that had tricked down her cheek. He wiped it away with him thumb and whispered to her, "I'll miss you too. Every single day."

She sighed and leaned into him, drinking up more of her wine and inhaling in his scent. She smiled in contentment and she ignored the fact that more tears were streaming down her cheeks. Hours went by until it was now dark outside and the two of them had hardly said anything to one another. She tilted her head to look at her friend and he did the same. Their eyes met and a sudden urge, a desperate need, flooded through Ino. She wanted to reach up with her hand and snake her hands behind his head to pull him down to meet her lips. She wanted to thread her arms around his neck to pull him closer. She wanted to press up against him and feel his hands roaming her body. So she did.

He seemed surprised at first. Then, Shikamaru wrapped his arms around her small waist, trailing one hand up and down her thigh. She moaned out his name as he deepened the kiss and he pushed them both down so he was on top of her. He began to press single, gentle kisses down her throat and then found his way back to her mouth. She clutched tight to him, wanting nothing more than to pull him as close to her as possible. He obliged, shifting himself and she smiled against his mouth. He traced his tongue across her bottom lip, begging for entrance and she did as he wished. His tongue slipped into her mouth, exploring all the crevices. Ino moaned in pleasure once again. Then the two parted for breath, Shikamaru's forehead resting against hers.

Ino looked up at him through her thick lashes, panting heavily. It was late, she realized, and pushed herself up. Shikamaru watched, disappointed. "It's late," she said, nervous for some reason, "I'll see you... when I see you..." But as she turned and headed for the door, Shikamaru reached out and grasped her wrist. He spun her around to face him and he cupped her cheek in his palm. The next few words he said to her were full of desperation, love, lust, need...

"Come to bed with me, Ino."

**-X-**

Blue eyes flickered open, squinting at the slivers of light that squeezed their way through the curtains, and she surveyed the familiar room. It wasn't her own, nor her old room at her parents' house. It wasn't that of any of her female friends, Sakura, Tenten, Hinata. But she did, after several disorientating minutes, figure out who it _did_ belong to. She turned her head to the side, noting that there was nobody beside her. She let out a breath, sitting up and staring down at her naked body.

The night before came back to her in a flash of recognition. She smiled when she thought back; Ino remembered Shikamaru's gentle tracing fingers as he ran them up and down her thigh after they had made love. And she remembered the tender kisses he trailed along her jaw. She sighed in content at the memory and stood, making her way towards his bathroom. It was messy, with a shampoo bottle on top of a pile of towels in the corner, and his aftershave sitting in the middle of the sink. But it smelt of him, and she inhaled it like a drug, closing her eyes before turning on the shower and stepping under the warm water.

It trickled over her body, waking her up and relaxing all her tense muscles. She ached all over, but not in a bad way. The way her lips seemed to throb and her hips ached was satisfying to her. She combed out her tangled hair with Shikamaru's comb and it was difficult, but she managed. Then she stepped out, wrapping her body with one of Shikamaru's smaller towels. She left the bathroom, and tugged on last night's clothes, which were rumpled and creased, but she didn't mind. Then, she opened the door to the main room and found Shikamaru, ready and dressed for his mission, cooking her breakfast. She smiled and approached him, hugging him around the waist from behind.

"Good morning," he said and she whispered it back to him, closing her eyes and breathing in the scent that was Shikamaru. Secretly, he smiled and dished her breakfast onto a plate. He turned and pried her arms from him, handing her the food. She settled herself down on the sofa rather than the table and took a few bites. She smiled and looked up at him. "Wow, Shika, you're a really good cook." He gave one laugh and took the plate to deposit it in the sink after she had finished eating.

It was still early in the morning. Shikamaru collected his weapons pouch and strapped it on, and Ino just watched him, following him with her eyes. She couldn't help but think back to his passionate kisses and tanned body last night every time she looked at him. She sighed, leaning her head in her hand and found herself staring. He turned to look at her, feeling her eyes bare into his back and cocked an eyebrow, "What?" She just stood up and walked up to him slowly, wrapping her arms around his neck, and pressing her soft lips to his own. He kisses back, pulling her closer. All too soon, she felt herself pull away so that she could look into his eyes.

Then, Ino blurted out the words she had been trying to find for years. "I love you."

"I love you too," Shikamaru said without even a second's hesitation. He was sure of his feelings towards this amazing woman. He held her closer and she melted into his embrace. The shadow manipulator kissed the top of her head and whispered to her, "I've got to go." She nodded but made no move to release him. In the end, he had to pry her arms from him and hold them to her sides. Then he gently lifted up her chin to see tiny tears in the corners of her eyes. "Shh... Don't cry, Ino." He hated to see her cry.

He pressed his lips to hers and she gripped at his shirt, tightening her hold on the fistfuls of fabric to ease out all her stress and worry. She felt the tears leaking from her eyes and pulled away from Shikamaru, resulting to burying her face in his chest. He sighed quietly, rubbing small circles into her back. She looked up at him, looked deep into his eyes and said to him, "I'll miss you so much." Then her expression completely changed and she wiped away her tears, stepping away from him and standing straight. She wanted to wave him off with a brave face. He smirked at her and said, "Goodbye."

"No, not goodbye," Ino said. She knew goodbye meant that she doubted he would come back. She knew saying goodbye meant she accepted his death. And she didn't, because Shikamaru _was _going to come home to her. "See you when you come home." He stepped towards her and cupped her face in his hands, leaning down to place a soft, gentle kiss on her lips and then he was gone, waving to her as he left the apartment. It was then that, after he had left, that she let herself collapse to the ground, sobs escaping her.

But she was happy that finally, after all these years, Shikamaru was finally hers.


End file.
